Tuesday, March 19, 2013

Tea Review Tuesday - A Review of TeaFrog's Pu'erh Mini Tuocha

A Review of TeaFrog's Pu'erh Mini Tuocha

With the first steeping of this unique tea, I could tell this was going
to be an awesome pu'erh. Unlike other mini tuocha that I have tried, this one
did not make me wait one, or even two infusions, to reveal to me its
delicious earthy tones. The first steeping produced a light brown liquor
with a light earthy aroma that also smelled faintly of tobacco. The flavor was rich, even with this first infusion, hinting at even
stronger flavors to come. The smoky, earthy liquor was mellow from the
beginning, sliding smoothly across the tongue. I was really impressed
that this was only the first infusion and yet this tea was giving so
much.
The second infusion steeped darker and stronger, smelling woody in
addition to earthy. The taste became strong while still not
overwhelming. Something of note which I found interesting was the fact
that while there is much flavor upon first sipping the tea, very little
aftertaste remains behind. The earthy rich flavor of this tea very
nearly drove me to distraction as I contemplated it and sat thinking,
completely forgetting for a few minutes about the review I was writing.
During infusion three, things changed. The tea went from being the color of milk chocolate to being a dark brown, akin to dark chocolate.
The aromas of the tea grew in intensity, and the flavors increased in
strength, lending large amounts of dark, woody flavor to the tea. These flavors reach out and grab ones attention, seeming to strive toward
drawing the consciousness into them. Mmm, delicious.
Infusion number four held a certain small degree of bitterness while
continuing to carry those flavors from previous infusions. I stopped
after four infusions, quite pleased with how this tea had turned out.
I would give this tea an 87/100 on my personal enjoyment scale.

TeaFrog's Pu'erh Mini Tuocha can be purchased from their website, here.
Photo credit to TeaFrog.
This review was unsolicited and uncompensated.